Older eucalyptus trees saved on Fiscalini Ranch Preserve

California Conservation Corps members Alejandra Orozco, left, Adam Jackson, and Jeremy Foster load up the chipper with fresh cut eucalyptus branches as they go through chainsaw training and chipping in preparation for an upcoming restoration project at the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve in Cambria in 2010. Joe Johnstonjjohnston@thetribunenews.com

California Conservation Corps members Alejandra Orozco, left, Adam Jackson, and Jeremy Foster load up the chipper with fresh cut eucalyptus branches as they go through chainsaw training and chipping in preparation for an upcoming restoration project at the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve in Cambria in 2010. Joe Johnstonjjohnston@thetribunenews.com

Balance is often a difficult state to achieve. Californians have an ongoing search for symmetry in their relationship with Blue Gum Eucalyptus and its aesthetic, habitat and environmental properties.

Recently, the Friends of the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve, in conjunction with the CSD Ranch Manager, initiated a project to remove eucalyptus on a 1.9 acre area on the 437-acre Fiscalini Ranch Preserve. After an extensive debate and in an effort to carefully balance the competing concerns referred to above, the FFRP Board voted to modify the original plan to remove all the eucalyptus in this plot and instead will retain the trees larger than 18 inches in diameter. Saplings and small trees, along with accumulated tree debris and invasive plants, will be removed in an effort to improve native forest health and aid in potential fire suppression. Removal of this debris will help limit the expansion of the eucalyptus grove and allow native plants to reclaim the margins of the area.

Friends of the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve appreciate your continued support of the Ranch. Please contact us with any questions or concerns you may have at ffrpcambria@sbcglobal.net